Remember, Ford Was Bailed Out Too

On this day when GM returns to public markets -- a day which
fortunately for The Treasury appears to be a "risk on" day --
you'll hear some squawking about how unfair it is that the
company was stripped clean of debt, while Ford still has its big
legacy overhang. And there's something to that, but remember,
Ford was bailed out, too.

It never got a direct cash injection or a pre-packaged
bankruptcy, but the bailout of GM and Chrysler prevented a
cascade of follow-on bankruptcies of suppliers, many of which
supply Ford.

Remember, too, that Ford CEO Alan Mulally was right
there in front of Congress supporting a bailout for "the
industry." That they didn't take the cash, directly, but they got
a bailout.